Do you get your 1940s clobber out for the Blitz Party, or relive your salad days at School Disco? Or would you like to get into the 60s spirit with Oh My God! I Miss You’s Grind A Go Go?

]]>http://blog.visitlondon.com/2010/07/visit-london-asks-whats-your-favourite-fancy-dress-event-in-london/feed/7White Mischief’s Third Birthday Party at Scalahttp://blog.visitlondon.com/2010/03/white-mischiefs-third-birthday-party-at-scala/
http://blog.visitlondon.com/2010/03/white-mischiefs-third-birthday-party-at-scala/#commentsMon, 29 Mar 2010 14:23:49 +0000http://blog.visitlondon.com/?p=7730On Saturday night I dipped my Victorian lace-up booted toe into the waters of steampunk at White Mischief’s Third Birthday Party. Steampunk is a fantasy genre that imagines a world in which we’d gone down the steam-powered route instead of electricity during the industrial revolution.

The dress code was described as “neo-Victorianâ€¦ scientists, explorers, and exhibitionists.” This still didn’t give us many clues as to what we should wear, although a friend assured us goggles were key. We couldn’t find any of those in the charity shops of Clapham, but it didn’t matter because as soon as we entered Scala, it was clear that steampunk attire covers a lot more.

We saw top hats, moustaches, military attire, pipes, corsets and admittedly, goggles and tweed. Dress-up isn’t compulsory at White Mischief, but you’d feel pretty silly if you turned up in jeans and a t-shirt. Steampunks take dressing up seriously and I was hugely impressed by the amazing costumes.

The best thing about White Mischief was the atmosphere and the variety of entertainment. Despite the effort that had gone into people’s costumes, everyone seemed relaxed and friendly.

Unlike many club nights, you don’t just turn up and spend the next few hours on the dance floor, there are lots of other distractions. From Victorian curiosities such as a flea circus, to a steampunk fair where you could buy jewellery, comics and more steampunk-inspired souvenirs.

White Mischief didn’t feel like a club, it was more like interactive theatre. We loved the entertainment, including the fantastic Oompah Brass band (singing along to oompah Bohemian Rhapsody was a real highlight); Voltini the electrocuting scientist (conducting electricity through some unmentionable body parts); burlesque from Beau Burlington (who managed to shed enough clothing weight to take off in an air balloon); and a chainsaw-juggling pirate!

So I’m a convert, I will definitely go to White Mischief’s next party, I’m already planning my outfitâ€¦

Wave your Union Jack with pride and swing into the 1940s with London’s Blitz Party, a night of uplifting community spirit, live bands and fabulous 40s fashion, at the air-raid proof “bunker” offered by Shoreditch’s railway arches.

It’s red lippy, rolled tresses and tea dresses for the ladies; brylcreem and braces for the gents. Men in uniforms (Allied Forces only please) gad about with head-scarved land girls. Blackout curtains and sandbags line the walls, while oil lamps, ration books, tea urns and sandwiches all add to the atmosphere of courage, camaraderie and East London cool.

We felt a real wow-factor on arrival, and spent much of the night people-watching – ogling the “officers” and admiring everyone’s amazing attention to dressing-up detail.

The venue is vast, leaving plenty of room for lindy-hopping along to the bands on stage. Seemingly professional dancers twirled past at top speeds, encouraging the rest of us to give it a go, imagining we were in Christina Aguilera’s video for Candy Man. When all the jiving and jitterbugging left us parched, we needed our best Blitz spirit to withstand the bar queues – authentic 1940s cocktails take time to prepareâ€¦ and there’s a war on, y’know!

The next Blitz Party will be on December 5, so chaps – roll up your sleeves, and chap-esses – slip on silk seamed stockings, and join the convivial crowds at London’s truly unique celebration of 40s fashion, frolics and fun.